For me, Slumdog Millionaire certainly wasn't the "feel good film of the decade". I actually found it a very distressing film with extremely difficult themes. Perhaps it's because I'm a mother but seeing kids in any level of poverty or distress deeply upsets me.
The movie really "moved" me on the subject of poverty and slums in India. So much so, that after I got home I researched what (respected) charities work in India to help children out of poverty and into a better life.
I would have loved it if (after the movie) information was made available to direct me to well-respected charities that help kids out of the slums. Nothing! Neither was there anything on the films website (I also looked there) to help.
I think that if a film is going to shine a light on such an important issue, then they have a responsibility to be part of the solution. The film did an amazing job of raising awareness about the slums in India but then didn't help viewers participate in a solution. I think this was a hugely missed opportunity which could have been far better capitalised on.
I was also disappointed to read that the children who acted in the films were paid a paltry amount of money and then sent back to live there. Really uncool.
As for me, I've still got "find slum charity" stuck on a post-it above my desk. I've committed to following through on it but how much faster it would have been if I'd been provided with the information whilst the graphic film images rang fresh in my mind.
